


In the Chillest Land and On the Strangest Sea

by BetanSurvey (Scedasticity)



Series: Mere Anarchy [1]
Category: Farscape
Genre: F/M, Future Fic, Gen, Not comics compliant
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-29
Updated: 2012-12-29
Packaged: 2017-11-22 21:20:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/614453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scedasticity/pseuds/BetanSurvey
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Twenty-five cycles after Peacekeeper Wars, the Nebari situation finally comes to a head -- but not in a way anybody expected.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In the Chillest Land and On the Strangest Sea

**Author's Note:**

> Set about 25 cycles after PK Wars, and in the same universe as Citations Omitted and the microfic Data Analysis. It's also in the same universe as a story I haven't managed to write yet, which will explain (among other things) what the deal with Nron shipyards is. The title is from the poem "Hope is the thing with feathers", by Emily Dickinson; the story was inspired by the "Hope" challenge at the Terra Firma Beach Bash, but just wouldn't get finished in time.

#####

_Hi Mom, hi Dad, it's me, obviously... Um, all right, I'm not sure_   
_where you are, but I was wondering if you'd heard anything_   
_more about this whole Nebari thing. We've been getting all_   
_sorts of -- *funky* stories here, and I haven't been able to get_   
_through to Uncle Rygel at all, and -- oh, hell, you're on_   
_vacation, aren't you. I'm sorry, it went right out of my head. So_   
_you haven't heard anything, and probably won't be getting this_   
_for days. Sorry. I'll send a proper message later. My love to_   
_Pilot and Moya, and you both._   
_< Transmitted from the Center for Eleemosynary Medicine to the Leviathan Moya>_

#####

It couldn't quite be called a blockade. It wasn't extensive enough, well-armed enough, or organized enough for that. A *cordon*, maybe, enough to monitor the border, but not really to control it.

"And what a fine display of interspecies cooperation this is," John remarked. "I see Peacekeepers, I see Scarrans, I see Luxans, I see Charrids -- which is not a very good thing, so close together -- I see Zenetan frelling *pirates* -- and what the frell is *that* thing?"

Aeryn looked, but the ship in question was unfamiliar to her, too. "I'm not sure. Pilot?"

"Its beacon identifies it as a scout ship of the Consortium of Trao," Pilot replied.

"Oh, of course, the Consortium of Trao," John muttered, then went on. "What, did every sorta-military ship in the area just get together and decide to put together this -- half-assed blockade?"

"Cordon, maybe. None of them can send more without implicitly threatening the others, not unless there's an actual threat," Aeryn reminded him. "Really, I'm impressed there's this much of a response." //And truly astonished it's been enough.//

The Nebari situation had been simmering for quite some time -- it had always been there, of course, once the more immediate threat of the Peacekeeper-Scarran war passed, but they'd had a good twenty-two cycles with no more word on the Nebari but Chiana coming and going, bringing scattered tales of the Resistance. Three cycles ago, word had gotten out about the existence of the Contagion. They'd more than half expected the Nebari to strike right then, enough to talk D'Argo and his pregnant girlfriend back on board Moya, pry Zhaan away from her medical studies, and keep the youngest, Pax, from going anywhere at all. *This* time, they were going to run, as far as they had to go to get away--

Except the Contagion didn't strike, the Nebari didn't attack, and nothing happened. Zhaan slipped the leash inside a quarter cycle, returning to the Center for Eleemosynary Medicine, to start her internship. D'Argo and Ksenia stayed longer, but eventually Ksenia wanted to finish the pilot training her pregnancy had interrupted, so it was back to the Neutral Territories Flight Academy -- D'Argo would be combining baby-minding with postgraduate physics courses. Finally, after sustained effort, Pax had talked them into letting her enroll in the Yondalao Institute of Diplomatic Education ("They don't teach *just* politics, Mom, and it's on the same planet as the Neutral Territories Flight Academy, so Dee will be there on the *tiny* chance anything happens, Dad--")

So it was that when the crisis finally came, they didn't even hear about it. With Pax gone, the ship had been feeling particularly empty -- "empty nest syndrome", John called it. In the interest of "making lemonade", they took a "vacation" in an uninhabited nebula, so Pilot and Moya could enjoy some free flight and John and Aeryn could enjoy some mostly-uninterrupted quality time together, and test the results of John's latest rejuvenation treatment. They didn't have a clue anything was wrong until they returned to civilization, stopped at a commercial relay beacon, and found six messages from D'Argo, eight from Rygel, twelve from Zhaan, fifteen from Stark, three from the New Eidolon Temple (could be from Noranti or an actual Eidolon), five from Jothee, and a whopping thirty-nine from Pax.

"Good thing the youthifying included my heart," John had commented later. It had been a nasty shock for both of them. Fortunately, Pax turned out to be upset, but not in any trouble or danger -- at least no more danger than everyone else.

When they had finally sorted through the messages, two main points became clear:

Apparently the Nebari planets had suddenly, inexplicably collapsed into chaos and violence.

Chiana was probably there at the time, but no one was sure.

"Pilot, you reading the Eleemosynaries out there?" John asked anxiously. Point three was that Zhaan, now almost done with her internship, had volunteered for the Eleemosynaries' relief mission to Nebari territories. This was a fine thing in theory, but in practice, Aeryn and John were both rather alarmed. "They'd better not've gone chargin' in there without *some* kinda armed escort--"

"No, there they are," Aeryn said, pointing to a small transport keeping pace with a Luxan scout ship. It had the distinctive blue-gray tint of a ship out of the Nron yards, and while she'd heard business there was slowly picking up as prospective buyers realized the worker takeover didn't mean all the ships were going to disintegrate, she was pretty sure they had no government contracts. //I don't know if the Baniks would even take a contract from a slave-holding government, which is most of them.//

"Thank God. Should we invite 'em on board? They're probably gettin' pretty stir-crazy in there..."

Aeryn hesitated, then nodded. "At least if Zhaan is there."

It didn't take long for Pilot to contact the other ship, confirm that it was from the Center for Eleemosynary Medicine and Zhaan Suncrichton was aboard, and issue an invitation. It was accepted quickly -- "Supply kits don't make good pillows, and we don't have a shower." Aeryn headed down to meet them.

Zhaan was first off the ship, with a one-armed hug for her mother (carefully not hindering her gun hand, just in case) and a wave for Pilot and Moya, via the DRDs. The rest of the Eleemosynary team followed. They were still mostly Baniks, but Aeryn picked out a Sebacean, two Interions, a Delvian -- appropriately enough -- and a Nebari who looked even younger than Zhaan -- he was an awkward adolescent, with none of Chiana's feline grace. Another intern, or even a student, she guessed, chosen for species rather than skill. They all wore the drab blue uniform of the Center for Eleemosynary Medicine, and appeared unarmed. (Zhaan, Aeryn could tell from the hug, had both a pulse pistol and a knife under her baggy tunic. Good to know her daughter hadn't lost all survival instincts.)

"Mother, this is Healer Tash, our coordinator," Zhaan said, gesturing to a Banik woman. "And Doctor Entellias is our senior physician." One of the Interions -- not too surprising, as Baniks had had no access to formal medical training until recently. "Healer, Doctor, may I introduce my mother, Captain Sun, our host here."

The Eleemosynaries murmured respectful greetings. Healer Tash, at least, knew perfectly well who Zhaan's parents were -- the Eleemosynaries had originally sprung out of the Banik liberation movement, in which Stark was deeply involved. Aeryn had met Tash cycles ago, when the other woman was younger than Pax was now. As for the others, they'd figure it out or they wouldn't, but there was no sense in shoving it in their faces, which was why John was still up in Command.

Aeryn guided the group to cells, made sure they had plenty of food cubes, then left DRDs to watch them, suggesting that Zhaan bring Tash to the center chamber as soon as the group was settled. With that, she turned her steps to Command.

"How is she?" John asked immediately.

"They haven't even been past the cordon yet, John. She's fine." Indeed, despite the cramped quarters on the Eleemosynary ship and everyone's frayed nerves, Zhaan's blue eyes had been sparkling with excitement, unshadowed as John's hadn't been for far too long. "Very happy to be here."

"You don't mean back on Moya, do you," John said. "Damn. I don't know whether to hope--"

Hope Zhaan could keep her innocence a bit longer, or hope she finally learned why her parents considered excitement a bad thing? John had to struggle to balance protection and preparation for the children, always had. Aeryn was of the opinion it was past time for Zhaan to see some of the uglier parts of life -- D'Argo had when he was a good bit younger, as they stumbled into the midst of proxy wars and slave revolts -- but she hated to kill that sparkle in her daughter's eyes.

But in any event-- "I hardly think it matters," Aeryn sighed. "I can't imagine this is going to turn out any way other than very, very ugly."

#####

_Crichton. Aeryn. You had better be surrounded by_   
_interference, or I'm going to be very offended you aren't_   
_taking my calls. I suppose you're off somewhere welded to_   
_each other. I wanted to let you know about the situation as it_   
_develops. About forty arns ago, contact with Nebari space_   
_was lost, apparently by everyone outside Nebari space._   
_We've been picking up scattered signals and reports since_   
_then. The Peacekeepers may know more, but the yotzes_   
_aren't sharing any information they have. So far, there's no_   
_sign of an invasion, or of any... other aggressive Nebari tactics._   
_I don't like to say more on an insecure channel. So no one_   
_knows what's going on, but it probably isn't the worst -- as far_   
_as everyone outside Nebari space is concerned. Do you_   
_know anything about who might be *in* Nebari space?_   
_< Transmitted from the Royal Palace of Hyneria to the Leviathan Moya>_

#####

John didn't care how blase the kid was acting, there was *no way* Jothee just *happened* to land this assignment. //Not a kid anymore,// he reminded himself. //All grown up with a family of his own.// And enough seniority to get himself out to this *cordon*. "How 'bout transmissions, comms traffic?" John asked. "Have you picked up anything?"

On the clamshell, Jothee shook his head. "Not a thing. Some of the other ships have more sensitive scanners, but they aren't sharing much."

"Figures. Anything at all?"

"Just that whatever happened, happened suddenly, about five solar days ago. It took a while before people realized something had happened -- we've only been here about two, three days. There are rumors a ship made it out a different route and is being held by the Peacekeepers, but nothing solid. I think the Eleemosynaries might have a little more, but they aren't talking, either." Jothee paused, then went on. "Crichton, do you know where Chiana is?"

John shook his head grimly. "Haven't heard from her for a cycle and a half, and that was through Stark. I don't know what she's up to."

Jothee nodded. "I'm hoping she'll hear about this mess and come to investigate."

//With our luck? No. She's in there.// "I hope so, too, Jothee. Keep us posted if you hear anything concrete, okay? And give us a call if you run low on supplies. We've got enough food cubes right now to feed all the Big Ten football teams, plus a few marching bands."

"I will. Thanks, Crichton."

The clamshell blanked, and John leaned back on the console where Aeryn was studying a chart of Nebari space. "Yo, Pilot, are you picking up anything past the cordon?"

"Many disconnected data fragments, Crichton, but nothing coherent. I can try to isolate and reconstruct individual messages, but it will take time."

"Anything would help, Pilot, if you have a chance," Aeryn said briskly.

//At least it's something to do. Well, as long as I'm glued to the phone...// "And I think I'd better send Dee an update, too. I'll just grab a DRD..."

The handiest DRD was "Rover", which had tended to trail around after John ever since Pax left. Setting the little guy on a table, John thought about what to say, as Aeryn and Pilot talked about their current guests. //He won't appreciate whitewashing, but I don't want to panic him. Hmmm...// What to say. They'd reached the cordon, Zee was fine (so far), they didn't know what had happened, they didn't know about Chiana. And he should say thanks, for stepping in with Pax. //We shouldn't've let her go.//

He started when Aeryn put a hand on his shoulder. "John?"

"Just tryin' to figure out what to tell Dee. Zhaan's friends settlin' in?"

"Yes. The group supervisor is Tash -- you remember her?"

"Tash... Yeah, Stark's fangirl." Despite the current situation, he had to smile at the memory of the scrawny adolescent, practically glowing with fervor, dogging Stark's steps all over Moya for as long as it took to get the rescued slaves to a new home, even snapping at seven-year-old Dee when he got too pushy. "So she gave up on becoming a Stykera and settled for healing?"

Aeryn didn't dignify that with a reply. "She and Zhaan will be joining us in the center chamber, to talk. Hopefully they'll be somewhat more enlightening than Zhaan's messages."

"Right." //"Whole Nebari thing", my ass.// "I'm gonna head down there, actually. Make sure the murrk meal hasn't burnt."

"What, were you using the welding torch again? Go on down -- I'll send D'Argo something quick."

Zhaan had actually beaten him to the center chamber, and was busily dishing out murrk meal and leftover thistle fritters. She looked up as he entered, and smiled.

"Daddy!" She hurried to hug him, then pushed back for an inspection. "You're looking well."

//Yes, my daughter joins the only humanitarian -- so to speak -- medical organization in this end of the galaxy, yet she's most worried about my gray hair.// He studied her in return. Her hair had grown out of the short buzz she'd gotten before starting her internship, and she had it in a short ponytail. She was still wearing an Eleemosynary's blue smock, but had evidently gotten the black pants and boots from her old cell. Aeryn was right -- she was way too happy to be here. "You too, Zee. How was the trip out?"

"Crowded. Noisy. Tense." She smiled sheepishly. "I'm afraid we spent a lot of time asking Renyr -- he's another intern, a Nebari -- questions about Nebari Prime that he mostly couldn't answer, since his parents left before he was born. They were asocials. Like Aunt Chi." Zhaan hesitated, her expression sobering. "You don't--"

"Know where she is, no," John finished. "Think we're gonna have to hear from her before we'll know any more about that." //No whitewashing, hmmm, John-boy?// But they just had to keep hoping...

Tash arrived then, all grown up and professional-looking -- all right, professional-looking in a Franciscan friar sort of way -- in Eleemosynary uniform. "Crichton," she said, nodding.

"Dad, I think you've met Healer Tash?" Zhaan said. "She's our coordinator."

John nodded back. "Good to see you, too, Tash. Wish it were under better circumstances."

Aeryn came in. "I got a message off to D'Argo. Zhaan, while it was good to say what you were planning to do, in the future you might want to be a little less blunt with Pax. She reacted very badly to hearing you were coming here."

Zhaan flushed, but didn't look very guilty. "I thought she was all grown up now. Shall we eat?"

They settled down at the table, and passed around the murrk meal and fritters. The murrk meal had been a favorite when the kids were younger -- it was pale blue and vaguely mint-flavored, but had the approximate consistency of starchy mashed potatoes, so it was an ideal sculpting medium. Even now, Zhaan was automatically shaping her serving into a cone. The fritters weren't very good cold. //Well, they weren't all *that* good to begin with.//

"D'Argo has been concerned, too," Aeryn said, when everyone had finished their preliminary assault on dinner. "He said there's an audiovisual recording circulating on Arnessk which is very disturbing."

Tash looked up. "Of conditions in Nebari space?"

"Supposedly," John replied. "If it's real, it probably got leaked a coupla times. Dee's supposed to be tryin' to send us a copy."

"That would definitely be helpful. We still know next to nothing about what happened. The Stykera can only hear the dying, and little enough of them at this distance."

//He didn't mention that.// "What's Stark been pickin' up?" Zhaan looked curious, too -- evidently this information was need-to-know for old friends of the Stykera, but not for interns.

Tash sighed. "Everyone speaks of this happening suddenly, and it did begin suddenly. But it didn't *end* suddenly. It kept up just as badly for days, even getting worse, and even the last time I heard from him -- yesterday -- it hadn't completely stopped. The Stykera can hear such pain and fear and rage..."

//I hope he can also hear someone calling him something other than 'Stykera'. It's gotta get old.// "That's, uh, not good."

"Rage would suggest someone is being blamed," Aeryn said, eyes narrowed. "I hope that makes it less likely to be some sort of disease. An accident might have lethal aftermath, but there would still have been an initial surge of fatalities. Probably. This sounds more like an attack."

"Yeah, but by who?" John objected. "If it's not the Peacekeepers or the Scarrans, who else is there who could shake up the Nebari this badly? Borg? Daleks? Vorlons?"

Tash looked politely baffled, and Aeryn ignored the remark, but Zhaan's forehead wrinkled. "None of those are real, right? You haven't mentioned Vorlons--"

"No, none of 'em are real. In this reality. That I know of." Hadn't he told the kids the 'Shadow War' story? "It *could* be an accident, or accidents."

"This many accidents may not be accidental," Aeryn replied grimly. "I want to see this recording."

#####

_Mom, Dad. I'll try to keep this short, I'm sure you have enough_   
_to worry about. I just wanted to let you know that I went and_   
_got Pax, so don't get too upset about the hysterical comm_   
_messages she's been sending everyone. I'm fine, Ksenia's_   
_fine, Ry is fine -- despite his best efforts to grab everything_   
_dangerous in the apartment, I can't have been this bad -- and_   
_Pax'll be fine when she's calmed down a bit. Take care._   
_< Transmitted from the Neutral Territories Flight Academy to the Leviathan Moya>_

#####

After dinner, Zhaan wanted to go see Pilot in person. Aeryn went with her, hoping Pilot had been able to make something of the transmissions. Tash went back to deal with the rest of the Eleemosynaries. John headed for Command, to try to find any more information.

"Dad seems tense," Zhaan observed, as they walked towards the Den.

"He's worried," Aeryn agreed.

"About Aunt Chi?"

"About Chiana, about you, about how all this will turn out." She glanced at her daughter. "We've avoided a major war for twenty-five cycles, now. After all we went through with the last one..."

"Twenty-five cycles?" Zhaan protested. "We have war casualty patients, relief missions, all the time. What about the Luxans and the Charrids? What about the Royal Sebaceans and the Charrids? The Charrids can't seem to go *two* cycles without attacking someone. Or the Sykarian revolt? The clan wars?"

"Proxy wars. Skirmishes. Local conflicts. There will always be something." Aeryn searched for an appropriately striking description. //I should leave the metaphors to John.// "Those wars... As horrible as they are, those wars you can run away from, Zhaan. The kind of war we're thinking of will follow you."

Zhaan was quiet for the rest of the walk to the Den, hopefully thinking about what Aeryn had said. Not quite as innocent as they'd thought -- she would have seen death, seen suffering, as a physician-in-training. She knew pain, maybe even knew death, but...

//Fear. She's missing the fear.// With parents who had been running scared from the day they met. //For the love of Chilnack, how did we manage that?// Even D'Argo had the wariness born of bitter experience. //Maybe that's it. While John and I were trying to solve whatever crisis it was, Zhaan always had her older brother there to tell her everything would be all right...//

She was still trying to decide if this was a good thing or a bad thing when they got to the Den and Zhaan ran to give Pilot a hug, unselfconsciously clambering up on his console. "Pilot! How is Moya? And you?"

"Quite well, thank you," Pilot replied. "We are both very happy you're here again. Messages are not quite the same."

"No, they're not, especially for Moya, I bet. It's good to be here." Zhaan shifted to sit cross-legged. "I hope my colleagues haven't been too much trouble."

"Not so far, but it hasn't been very long," Pilot said dryly. "And they seem very tired."

"It's been a long few days."

"So I heard." Pilot turned to look at Aeryn, who stood beside the console. "I've been analyzing transmission fragments from inside Nebari-controlled space. Many are heavily encrypted. Of the rest, surprisingly many are incoherent even after being reconstructed. Noises not recognizable as speech, or just... screaming."

Aeryn tried to decide which of their theories best explained that, and came up blank.

"There is one transmission, audio only, which I believe I have reconstructed in its entirety. It seems to be repeating on a continuous loop. It isn't overwhelmingly informative, but may tell you something." Pilot looked at her inquiringly, and she nodded.

"Let's hear it, Pilot."

The audio was scratchy and shaky, sounding like the patched-together reconstruction it was, but the words were easily understood. "This is Colony Two Spaceport. Do not attempt to land. The city is out of control and unsafe. Vessels unable to remain in space should attempt emergency landings in unpopulated regions." The speaker was obviously trying for a neutral, calm, *serene* tone, but her voice cracked on "unsafe", and wobbled towards the end of the announcement.

"She's scared," Zhaan observed, after a moment of silence.

"Yes, she is." A Nebari in a position of authority, *sounding* scared in an official announcement. "Anything else?"

"Not yet -- at least in terms of transmissions. However, Moya has detected multiple ships, mostly small craft, making for the border."

"Running away, I suppose." Hopefully whatever it was wasn't contagious in any way.

"Maybe some of *them* can explain what happened," Zhaan offered hopefully.

"If the cordon lets them through, maybe." //And if we can let them on board.//

"From the sound of it, we can hardly send them *back*."

"But we aren't directing the cordon, Zhaan. I'm not sure who is -- I'm not sure anyone is -- but their first concern is unlikely to be for the refugees."

Zhaan sighed. "I know, I know. And that's why Eleemosynaries are important, because no one else cares. But it still--"

"Incoming transmission from the Neutral Territories Flight Academy," Pilot said, holding up a claw for attention. Aeryn and Zhaan both waited. "D'Argo has obtained a copy of the audiovisual recording."

"Tell John. I'll join him in Command," Aeryn said.

"I will, too." Zhaan looked rebellious even before Aeryn looked at her. "I'm as involved in this as you two are."

//More so.// "True. Although maybe you should wait and see it with the rest of your colleagues, when they're rested." Zhaan could probably use some rest herself.

Her daughter sighed explosively. "Oh, you fight dirty, Mom."

"I fight to win," Aeryn corrected. "Go get some sleep."

She kept smiling until the route to Command diverged from that to Zhaan's quarters, then let the worried frown come to the fore.

#####

_Stykera, this is Tash. I've already sent a message to the_   
_Center, but I wanted to inform you as well. We've reached_   
_the blockade, but with what little information we have we_   
_hesitate to go past it, and not just because of the urgings of_   
_the blockading ships. There are many rumors, but little_   
_solid information. There is some good news: As you no_   
_doubt see from the message signature, we have met with the_   
_Leviathan Moya, and she and her crew have kindly offered_   
_us their hospitality. Young Zhaan is very happy to see her_   
_parents, though perhaps not quite as happy as they are to_   
_see her. Do not worry about us, Stykera. Should Sun and_   
_Crichton have anything to say about it, I do not think we shall_   
_enter Nebari space without guardians._   
_< Transmitted from the Leviathan Moya to Nron Shipyards>_

#####

"Okay," said Dee, standing against the background of his apartment, "I'm still not one hundred percent sure this thing is real. God knows I hope it's not. But if it's real, it came from a ship which blundered out of Nebari space and ran into a PK Command Carrier, and it's supposed to be of someplace on Nebari Prime."

In the projection, behind D'Argo, a small model Leviathan flew through the air. There was a startled squawk, and a protest in the background -- "Ry, Aunt Pax is trying to *study*. Ow! Ksenia!" -- then, in Ksenia's lower voice, "No biting, Ry. And -- *where* did you get that, hmm?" "Knife, Mommee! Gotta knife!" Dee swiveled, understandably distracted.

Aeryn shook her head, and murmured, "I don't know what it is about children of that age and knives."

"Don't remind me." Though in Dee's case he'd always been inclined to blame Noranti for recruiting a toddler to help chop ingredients for stews. "Of course, I'm still wondering how we ended up with our first grandchild named after Rygel."

"It's because D'Argo has only known him as a doting godfather and benevolent monarch, instead of a greedy backstabbing toad," Aeryn replied, as she always did.

"Yeah, but I just wonder."

The crisis resolved -- Ksenia walked by in the background carrying Ry and administering a scolding -- Dee turned back to the comm. "Sorry. Um, let's see. The recording was sent to a variety of people, one of whom shared it with a friend at the Peacekeeper Legatine here, who shared it with somebody at the Yondalao Institute, who showed it to a *class*, and copies have been in demand ever since. This one someone got by bringing a handheld *into* a class. There's no audio. The visual quality isn't very high, so you might want to see if Pilot can clean it up any."

There was another interruption from the background, Pax's voice: "No you don't!"

D'Argo pulled a face and shrugged. "Or you might not. Pax saw a cleaner copy, so you might want to take her word for it, and I wasn't exactly yearning for more detail. Take care, all right? And make sure Zee doesn't do anything too too crazy."

And with that trifling request, their son's image fizzled out. John looked over at Aeryn where she stood next to him, but her face was studiously blank. He sighed. "All right, Pilot, let's see it."

"Opening file 'Nebari Recording'."

It was a slightly fuzzy urban scene. The buildings were gray and utilitarian, maybe attractive in a sterile sort of way. Everything was very uniform and organized -- or it would have been, without the people.

The street was filled with people, the mob broken only by a few abandoned vehicles, one of them burning. Judging from the hair, it was all or almost all Nebari. The furious movement made the already fuzzy picture even harder to follow, but sometimes things jumped out in stark clarity. They were killing each other. Sometimes you could see a makeshift cudgel or a paring knife, here and there a pulse pistol, and several torches. Many of the Nebari were just hitting, kicking, strangling, even *biting* the others around them. Gray skin was blue with blood. There were already bodies in the street. In the background, something indistinct but moving fell from a high window. And of course, it was all eerily silent.

"People on the Homeworld, they're, they're like robots," Chiana had said once. "The DRDs have more personality. They make Varla look lively. She was an Establishment operative, she had to make *decisions* -- but them, they just go along with whatever they're told, no questions, no complaints, no comments."

"Sheep," John had suggested then, remembering junior high and *Animal Farm*. But now they were *crazy* sheep. Rabid sheep. Mad Sheep Disease.

On the walkway just below the camera, a woman wielding a metal bar compulsively bludgeoned a bloody mess on the pavement, no longer identifiable as even a biped, until she was seized by a man in the shredded remnants of some sort of uniform, who started trying to either tear her clothes off or her throat out. Or maybe both. Then someone with a flamethrower got them both.

John turned away before the flames died down, his stomach twisting. "Frell, is it all like this?"

"It's about half over," Aeryn said, her voice flat.

When John turned back, the bodies on the walkway were obscured by more people trying to tear each other apart. "It's like a goddamn zombie movie," he ground out. "I'm never gonna be able to watch one again." Not that they had any to watch, anyway, but it was the principle of the thing... "Frell, no wonder Pax freaked."

It ended. Finally. For a long moment no one spoke.

"Well," Aeryn said at last. "Something to give Tash, I suppose."

"Something to give Tash nightmares," John muttered. "Aeryn, what could do that? Some sort of drug? Voodoo? Did all the serene, greater-good-loving Nebari suddenly get their personalities switched to the opposite extreme?"

But Aeryn just shook her head helplessly. "Maybe Tash, or the Eleemosynary physician, can come up with a theory."

"And Chiana'll be down there." Agitated, he paced over towards the windows and back. "With our luck, of course she's there in the middle of it. And Zee'll be *going* there as soon as Tash stubborns her way past the cordon, which could be any minute now. And for all we know the frelling Establishment is just using this as a cover! This is gonna blow up in the worst way, and our friends, our kids'll be right in the middle of it--"

Aeryn stopped him, taking both his shoulders. "John. We don't know that."

He leaned his forehead against hers. "I know we don't." A deep breath. "I know. But--"

"Yes."

They went to bed then, and eventually even managed to get a little sleep.

#####

_Dominar Rygel, greetings. You have probably already_   
_seen the 'Nebari recording', but if not, you should. The_   
_version accompanying this message was circulating_   
_on Arnessk, and young D'Argo sent it to his parents. I_   
_apologize for the poor quality. Crichton and Aeryn are_   
_both well, if somewhat overwrought, and will probably_   
_contact you soon. Young Zhaan and a group of_   
_Eleemosynary colleagues are staying on Moya for a_   
_time before passing the containment cordon. I'm afraid_   
_we have had no news of Chiana._   
_< Transmitted from the Leviathan Moya to the Royal Palace of Hyneria>_

#####

The next day passed slowly, despite a promising start: Pilot woke them up with the news that a small ship, probably a trading craft, had come out of Nebari space and been detained. Who *exactly* it was detained *by* was still being "discussed" by the Peacekeepers and Scarrans present. Doctor Entellias, the Eleemosynaries' Interion physician, had gotten himself invited to the argument about what should be done with the ship's passengers by claiming to be an expert in diseases affecting the mind.

The rest of the Eleemosynaries drifted around Moya, mostly watching and rewatching the 'Nebari recording' and trying to learn something beyond the obvious. Aeryn made sure she was there the first time Zhaan saw it. She started to turn away at the same time John had -- the flamethrower -- but then clearly forced herself to turn back and look at the charred bodies full on. Her face went a bit green, but she kept watching through the whole thing.

For his part, John stuck by the comm, corresponding with Rygel, with Stark, talking to Jothee. He got off to let Tash talk to the Center for Eleemosynary Medicine, but otherwise didn't even break for lunch.

Aeryn kept an eye on the Eleemosynaries -- it wasn't that she distrusted them, exactly, but better safe than sorry. She also checked in regularly with Pilot, and made sure John remembered to breathe. In between that, she monitored nearby ships, so she spotted the little courier which slipped in before anyone commed them about it.

"Now who do you suppose that is?" she murmured in John's ear.

"Couldn't say. Unless--" John eyed the ship suspiciously. "You're thinking this is Scorpius stickin' his nose in. Wonder if he's going to try to take charge of the people on that ship?"

"I doubt he's here personally, but if I had to guess who *is*... is Sikozu working for him again, do you remember?"

John frowned, looking upward. "Ummmm... possibly, now that that business with the Kalish emigrants and Nron is sorta resolved... uhh... Wait, yeah. Noranti mentioned her visiting the New Temple just after the Contagion scare, didn't she? She's probably working for Scorpius again." He paused. "Sputnik, not Granny, in case there was any doubt. Speaking of the Temple, shouldn't there be some Eidolons here?"

"Right now they couldn't do anything but mediate between different parts of the cordon." Useful though that might be. And it would probably take more than Eidolons to restore peace to scenes like the one in the recording...

Aeryn didn't even try to talk John into coming to the center chamber for dinner, where a few of the Eleemosynaries would be joining them. She just turned Zhaan loose on him, and he was barely even late. So, naturally, right in the middle of dinner, they were hailed by the courier ship.

"You stay here," she ordered John, and headed for Command.

It was, in fact, Sikozu, back in orange leathers with "corkscrew" hair, looking much as she had the last time they'd run into her at Nron. Aeryn was glad she'd insisted on taking this. John had never been good at separating Sikozu from Scorpius, and he would never trust Scorpius.

The Kalish didn't waste time with preliminaries. "I knew you lot would be mixed up in this somewhere. Do you have the rest of the Eleemosynaries on board?"

"You look well, too, Sikozu," Aeryn replied. "Yes, we do. Why?"

"Good. Entellias seems marginally competent and is acceptable until I can get a team here, but he can't get any work done surrounded by jurisdictional quarrels. I knew I should have brought a larger ship." She shook her head, dismissing the thought. "I want to put the refugees on Moya for the time being. The Eleemosynaries can examine them."

"Sikozu, stop," Aeryn said. "You haven't explained why we should do this. And are they contagious?"

"All tests so far say no. And you should do this because you really want to know what's happening in there, and if you don't let them on you won't find out for a very long time."

Aeryn would have liked to say something to wipe the smug, superior expression from Sikozu's face, but nothing truthful came to mind. "I'll talk to the others. Wait, and we'll contact you shortly." The connection cut off then, and she smiled wryly. "Thank you, Pilot. Your opinion on this?"

"If we let them on board, we should also invite Ka Jothee and some of his warriors," Pilot replied promptly.

"Not a bad idea," Aeryn replied, thinking of the recording. They couldn't be that bad, or Sikozu would have said something about gibbering maniacs. "I'll talk to John. But maybe we should be sure we have some cells with functioning door locks."

She entered the center chamber and received expectant looks from all directions. Aeryn took a breath. "It *is* Sikozu. She has an outrageous--" //demand// "--request. She also has a tempting bribe."

"Oh, I can't wait to hear this."

"This is the Kalish Sikozu Shanu?" Tash put in. "I have heard of her."

"I bet you have."

"Crichton--" Not that he didn't have a point, after the mess when the Kalish got mixed up with Nron, but this wasn't the time for it.

"Right, sorry. What's Sputnik want?"

"A place to put the people on that ship that turned up earlier today," Aeryn replied. "And for the Eleemosynaries to examine them."

The Eleemosynaries perked up. John didn't. "Aaaaaand... what condition are these people in?"

"She didn't say." Aeryn watched John closely, glad Tash and Zhaan were keeping the Eleemosynaries from giving unasked-for advice. They didn't need an audience for this discussion.

"So that's follow-up question number one, then." John sighed. "What's the bribe?"

"Information. I'm not sure what they -- she -- has already, but obviously with the ship passengers on board we'd have complete access to anything they say. Which we wouldn't, otherwise."

John groaned, and buried his face in his hands. "Damn her," he said, muffled but still audible. "What's Pilot say?"

"Not to let them on board without an armed escort. He suggested Jothee."

"Follow-up question number two." John looked up. "You're thinking we should let them on unless they're zombie-movie extras?" The Eleemosynaries perked up again.

"I think so," Aeryn agreed reluctantly.

"We should make her pay rent." At Aeryn's raised eyebrows, John elaborated, "Hey, we'd charge to haul or store cargo, or move passengers. We should charge for being used as refugee storage."

"And the Eleemosynaries are just here at no cost because of Zhaan," Aeryn agreed, smiling a bit. As a currency-getting technique it was more like Rygel than Chiana. "All right. What condition are they in, can we get Luxan guards, we want you to pay us. I'll talk to her."

"Hey, I can--"

"You stay *here*."

#####

_John, Aeryn, I wanted to thank you for taking in Tash_   
_and the others. They're healers, and used to getting to_   
_the patients as quickly as they can. Right now Tash is_   
_sending updates about every arn, but that will probably_   
_change as soon as they get any patients. It would be_   
_very kind of you to send along any definite information_   
_you get about what has happened, assuming you ever_   
_do get any definite information. It all seems very_   
_confused... I've asked the Goddess to protect Chiana._   
_With your permission I'll say a prayer from each of you,_   
_too. Peace be with you._   
_< Transmitted from Nron Shipyards to the Leviathan Moya>_

#####

According to Sikozu, there were about thirty refugees, guaranteed non-zombies. To deal with the refugees, they had six Luxan warriors, John, Aeryn, Sikozu, a dozen-odd unarmed Eleemosynaries, and a bunch of DRDs. //Well, and Zee, I suppose, but only in a dire emergency.// He was pretty sure Zee had never had to shoot someone, and it would be nice to keep it that way for as long as possible.

Briefly, John wondered whether Zhaan or Pax would have the harder time coping if -- when -- the time came that they had to take lives to protect themselves, their own. (Poor Dee had gotten there early, at thirteen, when he'd shot a Zenetan pirate who'd stumbled on the kids' bolthole. He'd been distraught, and unsure why he was distraught, since he'd done the right thing, defended his sisters, done nothing his parents hadn't done a thousand times. At least the girls were older than that.) Zhaan was a healer, but also a bit more practical. Pax... was hard to read, hiding behind a wall of chatter, throwing some emotions out for everybody to see (case in point being thirty-nine panicked comm messages) while silently burying others so deep it took an empath to pick up on them. //She's a better liar than I ever was. No wonder she's gone to diplomat school.// But killing?

He was jolted from his thoughts as Sikozu raised her own comm. "You can come out now. Slowly, single file, and *unarmed*." Working for Scorpius again definitely hadn't worn off the sharper edges she'd picked up as a free agent.

The little shuttle's hatch slowly lowered, and the refugees started emerging. It was meaningless to call a Nebari *pale*, of course, but they were wide-eyed and twitchy, probably in shock. //As well they might be...// Many of them were wounded. One woman had two young children in tow, and there were three or four gawky enough to be adolescents. John didn't really feel he could judge the ages of the others, especially as any physical infirmity might be caused by injury. They were... relatively clean, or at least not covered in blood, though many were in ill-fitting clothes. Changed en route, maybe -- it had probably been a few days since they'd left... wherever.

It was ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous, to be disappointed not to see a familiar tilt of the head, or hear mocking comments on his advancing age. Chiana was one of tens of billions of Nebari, and this was just thirty of them. Of *course* she wasn't there.

The man in the lead looked around before slowly going to Sikozu. "You are Sikozu Shanu? I'm Gidolli, the, ah, the captain. Of the ship." His eyes darted around the bay, pausing on Aeryn, the Luxans, John, Entellias, and dismissed Tash as unimportant. "You offered medical help?"

"Talk to Doctor Entellias and Healer Tash," Sikozu replied, pointing to the Interion and the Banik. "The Sebacean woman is the captain of *this* ship. She can space you if you cause any problems." Aeryn kept her face impassive, but Zee rolled her eyes. Sikozu wasn't done. "And I'm sure you recognize Luxan warriors."

//Yeah, Sputnik, you've got plenty of bad cops. Congratulations. Now be sure to leave my name out of it.// Although it was possible Nebari from the Homeworld hadn't ever heard of him. It would've been a nice change, but he wasn't about to check.

"Don't make any trouble and there won't be any trouble," Sikozu finished.

In the brief silence that followed, Tash stepped forward. "We'll see the most severe injuries now," she said.

"And I'll see *you*," Sikozu said to Gidolli. "The rest of you go with the Luxans."

There was some confusion as the Eleemosynaries decided on the five Nebari to treat first -- they could have handled more patients, but caution was reigning for the moment. The Luxans herded most of the rest to the prepared cells, where they would find food and blankets and places to wash and sleep. Sikozu hauled off the hapless Captain Gidolli to the Maintenance Bay of the Third Degree, Aeryn and John following silently, a few DRDs following them.

The normally unused maintenance bay had been prepared by Pilot, at Sikozu's instruction. It was mostly dark, except for a bright light in the center. It looked like something from an old movie, but Gidolli looked intimidated. In the middle of the room, directly under the light, was a bench for the interrogatee. The interrogator had a more comfortable stool. John and Aeryn could lurk in the shadows and sit anywhere they liked.

"Vee have vays ov making you talk," John muttered, as Sikozu got the Nebari settled to her satisfaction. "Maybe she's been spending time thinking up how she'd run an interrogation if Scorpius ever let her?"

"It does seem a bit odd." Aeryn leaned against the wall. "I wonder how worried she is that he'll try to conceal information?"

Sikozu glanced over at a DRD. "Start recording."

### 

Examiner (S. Shanu): How did this happen?

Subject (#1, "Gidolli"): I don't know. We were on the Homeworld. It happened during the Transmission -- the daily message from the Establishment. Everyone watches it, but, ah, but the coolant system had ruptured, and I'd been called down to look at it. Most of my crew was down there -- there are, there were only five of us. Vettor was watching the Transmission. I'm not sure how long it was, but the first we knew anything was wrong was Vettor started -- screaming...

Examiner: (after a pause) The one watching the... *Transmission* started screaming.

Subject: Vettor, yes. We called him, but he didn't answer, and when we went up, he -- attacked us. Just attacked us, like some sort of beast. He *bit* us, even, wouldn't listen to anyone... he'd always been a good crewman. Midona finally hit him hard enough that he stayed down, but he -- he never woke up. After that, we had time to realize that -- we'd called the port Monitors when Vettor became violent, but we'd never gotten through, their receiver was overloaded. I was going to seek them in person, but when I stepped out of the ship... It was chaos, mindless violence and anger, no... I barely got out of the hanger before I was attacked. If Midona hadn't come after me and used the fire extinguisher on them, they'd have torn me to bits... Midona always has had too much of a temper. (pause) Many of the other ships in port just... left, to escape the madness, but with our coolant system ruptured, we couldn't. We just tried to repair it, and hoped none of... *them* could break in, and... we *tried* to ask for help. We kept contacting the Constabulary, but they never responded. And it just... kept happening. (Subject becomes agitated) It just kept happening. They killed each other, but there were still bands of them running around when we finally got repaired. It just kept happening.

Examiner: Bands? They work together?

Subject: I don't... you should ask some of the others, the passengers. They saw more of... it. One man said they were in bands--

### 

Subject (#2, "Biasi"): Bands is... not the word I used. Packs. Like animal packs. I'm not sure, but I think it's not that they started forming packs, but the ones in packs are still alive, while the others... aren't.

Examiner (S. Shanu): I see. Describe the packs.

Subject: I'm a social analyst, not a zoologist, madam!

Observer (J. Crichton): (quietly) I'd hate to think what a 'social analyst' does on the Nebari Homeworld.

Examiner: And they're still Nebari, not animals.

Subject: It's not as if I went out to study them. It looked like simple brute domination, submitting to the strong and banding together for mutual benefit. There's violence even within the packs. They don't speak, they barely even use tools. They're no better than the others, just a little smarter. Except... except some of the packs have children in them -- with them. Mostly, children were just -- just -- they died first. But -- I think -- the ones in the packs leave their own children alive, protect them.

Examiner: And did you watch the Transmission?"

Subject: Well, yes, of course. I'm a good citizen.

### 

Subject (#4, "Lariok"): Everyone is *supposed* to watch the Transmission, every day, but, ah, but it's usually not anything... interesting. Uh, you aren't going to report this, are you?

Examiner (S. Shanu): To whom?

Subject: Uh, right. We get half an arn off at the factory to watch it, but I hadn't gotten much sleep, my neighbors have a fussy baby. Since my meal break was just before, I had a whole arn, so I went up to the repair closet to take a nap, and I, um, I slept through it.

Examiner: Through the Transmission?

Subject: I was... planning on that. But then I was still asleep when everything -- when everything got frelled. The baby was *really* fussy, and the door was thick -- the repair closet door. I woke up when Colosa came in to hide and tripped on me. She was covered in blood, and she had one of the spare trimmer blades. She looked just like them, only I didn't know that, but she was just trying to get away. She told me what happened, wouldn't let me leave to look, said she'd kill me if I risked the hiding place. Scared the dren out of me, but it probably saved my life.

Examiner: Then what?

Subject: Well... I hoped the Constabulary would come. We waited, but... After about a day and a half, we came out. The factory was pretty empty, just... just bodies, but there were still... *they* were still in the street. We needed to find food, though, and Colosa was getting sick -- an infection, from a... bite. She's with the blue-robes now, they say she'll be all right.

Examiner: Had Colosa seen the Transmission?

Subject: Um... I don't know. Maybe?

### 

Subject (#9, "Colosa"): I sort of saw it. I was in the room, but I couldn't see very well from where I was sitting and the audio nearest me had died. It didn't seem very unusual to me. But then... everyone just... started screaming. And attacking each other.

Examiner (S. Shanu): Everyone?

Subject: Almost. There was a girl sitting next to me, she didn't, and the Rotating Squealer--

Examiner: What?

Subject: There was a man who was sometimes there. Supposedly he was a specialist in... something, but he was really an Establishment observer, to make sure the factory was in order. He didn't go fahrbot, either. He tried to order everyone to calm down, but they just... tore him to bits. Tore him up. Worst thing I ever saw. The girl, too. I just... ran faster. Hid. Ran into Lariok, that was lucky. Found a ship that wasn't gone, that was *really* lucky.

Examiner: What do you think caused it?

Subject: My luck? No, I know what you're asking... It was the Transmission. Don't know how or why, but it has to be, doesn't it? We talked about it on the ship. Most of the people there didn't see it, for whatever reason. A few did, but... they made *jokes* about it.

Examiner: What about Biasi?

Subject: The social analyst? Oh, well... he's a social analyst. They're weird. I think they think in numbers, anyway.

### 

Subject (#18, "Ranuis"): I was asleep, I work a night shift so we don't have to leave the children at a care center. The nearest one is very crowded. As for Soavi and Trisola, our receiver is broken. It was supposed to be fixed... yesterday, actually. But none of us saw the Transmission.

Examiner (S. Shanu): When did you first know something was wrong?

Subject (#18, "Ranuis"): When -- people started screaming. The walls aren't soundproof. I tried to contact my spouse, but I couldn't get through to him. I didn't -- I turned off the lights and took the children into the lavatory. Gave them Soother to keep them quiet. We hid for days... It was so terrible.

Subject (#19, "Soavi"): Wasn't s'posed to happen.

Subject (#18, "Ranuis"): Of course it wasn't, dearling.

Examiner: What happened after you--

Observer (J. Crichton): Hey, wait a... microt. Why do you say it wasn't supposed to happen, kiddo?

Subject (#19, "Soavi"): (giggles) You look funny. Your face is all pink.

Observer (J. Crichton): Yeah, just call me Commander Bozo. You're Soavi?

Subject (#19, "Soavi"): Yes.

Subject (#18, "Ranuis"): Yes, *sir*, Soavi.

Subject (#19, "Soavi"): Yes, sir, C'mander Bozzo.

Observer (A. Sun): (laughs)

Observer (J. Crichton): So why'd you say it wasn't supposed to happen?

Subject (#19, "Soavi"): Vinkel said so. Vinkel's the best. He had a *gun*.

Subject (#18, "Ranuis"): Vinkel is a young man who came to our aid when we were... cornered, later. If it weren't for him I'm not sure we would have made it.

Examiner: What's this he said?

Subject (#18, "Ranuis"): I'm not sure, I don't remember anything of the sort.

Subject (#20, "Trisola"): (inaudible)

Observer (J. Crichton): What was that, sweetie?

Subject (#20, "Trisola"): You weren't there, Mum. It was just after the lunch-shop girl died. Vinkel was having trouble walking, so he was sitting with us and her and the unconscious boy. Vinkel said it wasn't supposed to happen. Said 'It wasn't supposed to happen this way.'

Examiner: Did he say anything else?

Subject (#20, "Trisola"): (inaudible)

Subject (#19, "Soavi"): She's scared of you. I wanna talk to C'mander Bozzo.

Observer (J. Crichton): Thanks, sweetie. You've been a lot of help.

###

It took some asking around to locate "Vinkel", who, it turned out, was one of the badly injured Nebari who was staying in the lab. "He had a fractured leg, and the bone came through the skin," Zhaan explained earnestly when they turned up. "That usually means at least infection, and very often necrosis if it isn't promptly treated, and... it wasn't, and the conditions were bad besides." Zhaan glanced across the lab. "Doctor Entellias had to amputate, can you imagine?"

"Ouch," John muttered. "That sucks. You don't see a lot of amputees around here."

Aeryn raised her eyebrows. "A Peacekeeper with a compound fracture that far gone would probably get a killshot, unless she was *very* important. Do you know when he -- Vinkel -- will be able to talk?"

"You'd have to ask Doctor Entellias, when he finishes fixing Midona's cheekbone." Zhaan looked between her parents, then at Sikozu. "Why?"

"He might know somethin'," John answered, before Sikozu could say anything. "How're things going?"

"All right," Zhaan replied, shrugging. "They're all going to live, anyway. They've been coming back scared from the... interviews. I've been cleaning and bandaging. Pax's pet DRD is following me."

"Yeah, Rover was heartbroken when she wouldn't take him to school," John replied easily. "Was following me for a while." There wasn't a whole lot of point in haunting the lab, especially if Sikozu was going to be there. "You gonna be free to have some dinner at some point, Zee?"

"At some point, sure. We actually outnumber the seriously injured patients." Zhaan brushed back a stray strand of hair, looking abruptly self-conscious. She was back in full Eleemosynary uniform, and the loose clothing made her look younger. "Do you know what happened, yet?"

John snorted. //Well, we're working our way through 101 Ways to Survive a Zombie Holocaust.// "Not as such."

Aeryn looked over at Sikozu, who in turn was staring intently at Vinkel as if she could will him awake. "What happened, some. Why it happened, no. Like your father said, *he* may know something."

#####

_Scorpius, an update. The investigation is proceeding_   
_apace. I've interviewed most of the Nebari on the_   
_ship which emerged here, and I'm forming some_   
_theories. Reports so far indicates it's *something* to_   
_do with the last official propaganda transmission the_   
_Establishment sent out -- chaos broke out_   
_immediately following the transmission. How that_   
_happened, I don't know, but if you can get a copy of_   
_the transmission, I suggest care in examining it. I_   
_have a potential clue about *why* the transmission_   
_had such an effect, but I'm still checking. --And yes,_   
_it is *that* Leviathan Moya. I'm beginning to suspect_   
_a previously unknown law of physics that guarantees_   
_the presence of Crichton or his shipmates wherever_   
_there is sufficiently complicated mayhem._   
_< Transmitted from the Leviathan Moya to Scorpius's Carrier>_

#####

Aeryn made rounds before going to bed. Most of the Nebari refugees were bedded down in four neighboring cells. The doors were locked, but they didn't seem to mind that or the patrolling Luxan warrior -- maybe most Nebari didn't even notice confinement. She paused to study Ranuis, Trisola, and Soavi. Both children were curled against their mother, fists knotted in her clothes. She could remember D'Argo hanging onto her like that, after a few close calls. Was Ranuis not deeply attached to her -- probably late -- spouse, or was she shunting her grief aside for the children's sake? In either case, there were better people to deal with it than Aeryn. Thankfully.

Two of the off-shift Luxans were sleeping, a third recording a message to his family. Aeryn gave them a polite nod and passed on.

The Eleemosynaries' sleeping quarters were still busy, and the healers, doctors, and trainees swapped theories back and forth. Doctor Entellias looked like he was trying to sleep, but while Aeryn was in hearing range, he was disturbed twice by people trying to settle an argument.

The lab was quieter. Sikozu was still there, watching the unconscious Vinkel as if he'd teleport away the microt she took her eyes off him, but she wasn't getting in the way of Tash or the other Eleemosynaries. The Luxan guard looked a little bored, without even any conscious charges, but he was staying alert.

Zhaan had expressed her intention to bunk with her colleagues, but Aeryn found her in her old cell, asleep fully dressed in blue tunic and pants slightly spattered with dark blue blood, curled around Beebkyoo the stuffed keedva. Going to her old toy for comfort? //You could have come to us, Zhaan.// Perhaps in the morning.

"Rover" the DRD sat disconsolately in Pax's cell; John had hung a family picture of D'Argo, Ksenia, and Ry on the door of their son's cell. Their own quarters were dark and empty -- John was probably up in Command.

The next stop should have been Pilot's Den, but instead Aeryn found herself standing outside Chiana's cell. Such as it was. Their friend had visited Moya since leaving Hyneria -- sometimes for extended periods -- but she'd never really lived with them again. "Too many narls, too many diapers," she'd say, or sometimes "Too much domestic bliss," which was probably nearer the truth. Chiana had had a series of lovers, or at least *recreational partners*, and she hadn't buried her heart as Aeryn had once tried to do, but being on Moya without *her* D'Argo had to sting.

There wasn't much in the cell. A few changes of clothes, a small stash of currency, and a closed box Aeryn wasn't going to open. Not yet. //Not unless we're *sure* she's not coming back.//

Chiana was a survivor. She knew how to run and hide at *least* as well as any of the refugees they had on board.

She at least had a chance.

Aeryn did get up to see Pilot after that. He looked up as she walked in. "A very interesting day, Aeryn."

"That's certainly one way of putting it." She perched on the edge of his console. "How is Moya with... all of this?"

Pilot dipped his head. "She is nowhere near passenger capacity, as you know. And she is not frightened for herself -- there is still no sign of Nebari military forces."

Aeryn nodded. "That's good." It seemed pretty evident now that this -- whatever it was -- was real, not a trick. A real disaster. "I don't know how much longer we're going to be here. Probably at least until the Eleemosynaries move on."

"Zhaan seemed to do well today," Pilot offered. "She appears to enjoy medicine."

"Yes. The Eleemosynaries are a good fit, so far." She hoped Zhaan could have a nice, peaceful career with them, but given their luck it seemed unlikely. Her parents were both evidence of how quickly one could lose a life one was perfectly happy with -- and besides, Eleemosynary work was frequently not very peaceful. "Is John still in Command?"

"He's sent messages to young D'Argo, to Stark, and to Dominar Rygel, and has been listening to the cordon's comm traffic for the past arn."

Aeryn nodded. "Anything interesting?"

"Not particularly. A great deal of strained politeness."

"Good, then maybe I can get him to get some sleep." She gave Pilot a smile, and started out, then stopped as something occurred to her. "I'm sorry, Pilot, with all the refugees here it slipped my mind. Have you unscrambled anything else on the comms, from Nebari space?"

"Mostly scattered distress signals," he replied soberly. "None very informative. Moya is also detecting scattered encrypted signals, but we don't have enough to even attempt to decode them."

So *some* fraction of the Establishment was still around, or at least someone using their equipment. That was good to know. "All right. Thank you, Pilot." She stopped again. "Could you please wake us if Zhaan's sleep is troubled?" By nightmares.

"Of course, Aeryn. I'll also monitor the medical laboratory."

"Thank you." She smiled briefly, and headed for Command.

John was seated, a sardonic smile on his face as he listened to the ship captain from the Royal Sebacean fleet threatening to send the Charrids away if they wouldn't mind their manners. Aeryn raised her eyebrows. "Can they do that?"

"Beats me. You should've been here earlier," he drawled. "The Royal Sebaceans and the Consortium of Trao were tryin' to out-pretentious each other. Everyone else was in awed silence. Of course, after that the Charrids were goadin' the Luxans, which brought on the lecture."

Aeryn rolled her eyes. "Maybe we *should* be calling the Eidolons to supervise the cordon. Come on, John, you need to get some sleep."

"Sleep, sleep, all I ever hear about is sleep," John groused. "Pilot you'll keep an eye -- keep a DRD -- on everything?"

"Of course, Crichton," Pilot replied.

"He just wants to get me off the comm for ten minutes," John whispered loudly to Aeryn. "Y'know Vinkel won't wake up until we're asleep, right? Cosmic Laws of Irony."

"Then we'd better get to sleep, hadn't we?"

John fell asleep almost right after crawling into bed. Exhaustion was winning out over worry. Aeryn sighed to herself, and hoped Vinkel would stay unconscious until after lunch.

#####

_Hey, Astro. Hope things are still okay over your way._   
_Your guys got some patients, finally, so they may have_   
_stopped updating. They're all fine, anyway. Can't say_   
_the same for the Nebari Homeworld, which seems to've_   
_gone to hell in a handbasket. It's no wonder you heard_   
_it. Just between you and me, I'm not sure sixteen_   
_Eleemosynaries is gonna do it. I don't think just the_   
_*Eleemosynaries*'ll do it -- I certainly wouldn't want Zee_   
_down on that planet without a well-armed escort. Oh,_   
_by the way, Sikozu's here. I'll be reeeeal surprised if_   
_Scorpius actually gets this one under control._   
_< Transmitted from the Leviathan Moya to Nron Shipyards>_

#####

Vinkel woke up about midmorning. Fortunately Pilot was on top of things, or they never would have made it to the lab before Sikozu started grilling the guy. (Tash apparently nixed shining any spotlights on him or dimming the rest of the lab.) As it was, John had to stop in the middle of doing the laundry, and Aeryn cut short a comm call with Jothee.

"Not that there was anything new to say since yesterday," John pointed out as they hurried to the lab.

"No. But he's nervous."

The lab was busier now, with less seriously injured Nebari getting follow-up checks, and more Eleemosynaries than was strictly necessary. Doctor Entellias was giving a little lecture about bone regeneration to a cluster of four or five younger Eleemosynaries. Zee had her arms up to the elbow in the *problem* conduit. Damn thing must have started sputtering again. Vinkel had been hauled off to the closest thing to a secluded corner the lab had.

Tash was checking Vinkel's vitals, glaring at Sikozu. Vinkel seemed more interested in his half-missing leg than the Kalish staring at him like something on a specimen plate. "I can... I can feel my toes," he protested.

"That will happen," Tash said, not unkindly. "Are you in other pain?"

"N-no. You're... who are you? Where am I?"

"I'm Healer Tash of the Center for Eleemosynary Medicine, and you're on a Leviathan." Tash glanced over her shoulder, and added reluctantly, "This person would like to ask you some questions."

Vinkel blinked at Sikozu. "You're a Kalish?"

"I'm a fact-finder." Sikozu moved forward, past Tash. "I have information that you know something about why everyone on Nebari Prime started trying to kill each other."

//That's putting it a bit strong, Sputnik.//

"I don't know anything," Vinkel said dully.

Sikozu sighed. "Pilot," she ordered, "play the recording."

No need to ask which recording, but in a room full of Nebari patients! "Dammit, Sikozu--" John started. But she was holding a small handheld screen right in front of Vinkel's face.

As torture, it worked well and quickly. "We didn't mean to!" he cried, attracting looks from the rest of the room. Most of the Eleemosynaries focused determinedly on their work, but Zee closed the conduit and drifted over to stand behind her parents.

"What work did you do for the Establishment?" Sikozu demanded.

"I didn't. I wouldn't! I *hate* the Establishment! We were trying to *stop* the Establishment, it just went wrong!"

"Frell me dead," Aeryn breathed. John had to agree.

"The Nebari Resistance did this?" Sikozu demanded.

The Resistance? //The Resistance did *this*?// And he'd thought Earth anarchists had caused some serious trouble.

"I didn't do it," Vinkel whispered. "I was just a courier. I took the code to a contact at the Central Relay Station, and I didn't know anything more about it until later. They told me... told me the Establishment uses the Transmission to implant messages. The idea was -- if different messages were substituted, it would make people take a -- a new look at their lives."

"It certainly did that," Zee muttered, not very quietly.

"How did they do it?" Sikozu asked. "With the Transmission. How did it implant messages, and how did your friends alter it?"

"I don't *know*," Vinkel moaned. "It wasn't supposed to be like this. It was just supposed to -- to wake people up, to make them look at their *own* priorities instead of the Establishment's. Give the mind-cleansed back the impulses that were taken from them. That's what they said. And it just went all wrong..."

"It certainly did that, too," said Zee, before she subsided at a Look from Aeryn.

Sikozu nodded, eyes narrowed. "Where did you get the code?"

He laughed painfully. "Won't do you any good. The head of my cell was Dardi, he gave me the code, told me where to take it, might know where it came from. But he's dead. Shot himself."

"And the rest of your cell?" Sikozu pressed.

"Don't know. Probably dead, mostly."

"Mostly? Were there any on the ship you came out on?"

Vinkel just shook his head and looked away, which might mean yes *or* no. "Doesn't matter. They didn't know about it. All very secret. But it wasn't supposed to happen like this."

Hmm, since he didn't say there *weren't* any on the ship, that probably meant there *were*. John wondered if the other Resistance member had been interviewed yet. Maybe the crewperson, Midona -- she'd certainly sounded like someone who might be interested. //Too violent to be a proper Nebari.//

Sikozu grilled the poor guy a while longer, but that seemed to be everything he actually knew. She finally left, muttering to a recording device about artificially heightened susceptibility and necessary expertise. Doubtless she'd be on the comm to Scorpius in a matter of minutes.

Tash gave Vinkel a sedative, without asking. "Well," she said after a while, "I'm going to be asking for reinforcements."

"You probably won't be the only one," Aeryn said. "Once word of the -- extent of the disaster gets out, the scavengers will be circling. Scorpius's challenge will be keeping the Peacekeepers and the Scarrans from going to war over which gets to move in."

"He'd better not try to take possession himself, that's all I can say," John muttered. He was pretty sure he still didn't really *get* "the extent of the disaster". It sounded like the psychological equivalent of the wormhole weapon. Maybe the people using "the code" hadn't *gotten* it either.

Zee hugged her knees. "Sounds to me like if they don't hurry, there won't be much left to scavenge," she said softly.

"They're gonna be tryin' to find whoever engineered this," John said. "The code itself and whoever wrote it. Think they can understand this needs to not happen again?"

Aeryn snorted. "Neither the Peacekeepers nor the Scarrans are very fond of chaos, John. They'll--" She stopped. "Actually, it depends on whether they want to use it on each other."

"I doubt it would work," Tash said. "Nebari are a bit different. The focus on the Greater Good is... impressive. I don't know how this... thing in the Transmission worked, but I'd guess it played on the way most Nebari -- *instincts* are suppressed. They were accustomed to doing what they were told without question, and when they were told to be selfish, for the first time--"

"It woke up the id?" John suggested.

"The what?" Tash said.

"Wait, wait," Zee spoke up, possibly to derail any Earth-vocabulary discussions before they could get started. "And Peacekeepers *aren't* used to doing what they're told without question?"

"Doing what they're told, yes -- but they tend *not* to suppress violent impulses. They're more selfish." Tash looked apologetically at Aeryn, though the ex-Peacekeeper present didn't look terribly offended. "Present company excepted."

"So the Nebari were vulnerable because they were *selfless*?" John demanded. "That seems all wrong."

"Not selfless, *artificially* selfless. And--" Tash shook her head, and smiled a bit. "This is all just speculation from what we know, Crichton. I could be completely wrong." She sighed. "I need to contact the Stykera, and the Center. If you will excuse me?"

John and Aeryn got out of the way of the rest of the Eleemosynaries, drifting to a halt in the corridor.

Zee drifted after them. "So what happens now?"

"Nothing's really changed," Aeryn pointed out. "You're staying here until the Eleemosynaries go farther into Nebari space. We wait and see."

"You won't come?" she asked wistfully.

"I think it'd be a bad idea, kiddo. You know things only get more complicated when we're around." John put a hand on his daughter's shoulder. So grown up. "Maybe we'll drop by Arnessk, see your brother and sister."

"But we'll be in touch," Aeryn added. "If *anything* happens."

Zee muttered, "Aw, *Mommmmm*," but she seemed reassured, and went back in to help with the patients. By unspoken accord, John and Aeryn went back to their quarters. Unlike the Center Chamber, they probably wouldn't be interrupted there.

John dropped heavily onto the bed, and flopped onto his back. Fascinating ceiling they had. "God. The Resistance did it. This is not what I was expecting."

"No." Aeryn sat down next to him.

"The killer thing is, they really did save the galaxy from the Nebari," John said after a while, still staring at the ceiling. "Even if the Contagion activates, the Establishment's in no condition to take advantage of it. So all the rest of us owe 'em a big thank-you. They just screwed their own people over to do it."

#####

_Hey Mom, Dad, Pilot. You're probably at Arnessk by_   
_now, so you can censor this for Pax's consumption, not_   
_that this message should panic anyone. We're still_   
_surveying the Nebari Homeworld. Our preliminary_   
_assessment is that the Transmission affected about_   
_ninety-five percent of the population here, although it_   
_might be less on other planets. Some of the unaffected_   
_are Establishment, some are -- free thinkers, I guess._   
_Interesting thing is, the Establishment types are mostly_   
_administrators. Their Enforcers tried to enforce, and,_   
_well, yeah. The military vessels went pretty much the_   
_same way as the rest, only worse -- not a lot of free_   
_thinkers among the troops, and even the high-ranked_   
_people mostly just got pulled into it, much more than_   
_operatives and bureaucrats. There is a funny sort of_   
_third class of mostly unaffected people, which probably_   
_explains that idiot Biasi. Apparently people who are_   
_used to thinking analytically -- like a social analyst, hah_   
_\-- thinking critically, were also resistant._

_Our latest guess is that fatalities are somewhere from_   
_seventy to ninety percent of the population -- we still_   
_have only rough guesses of how many affected people_   
_are still alive. Tash hasn't given up hope of treating_   
_them, especially the "pack" type. There's one "pack"_   
_that seems to be living in the building next to our base._   
_We've confirmed twenty-two members, including_   
_several children. They are deterred from attacking by_   
_pulse rifle warning shots, they'll peaceably accept_   
_offerings of food and water, and one of our escorts_   
_thinks he heard the children speaking. Tash is_   
_planning to have someone try to approach them more_   
_closely -- *no*, not me. As for the others -- the zombies,_   
_as Dad has apparently ended up getting everyone to_   
_call them, probably because they don't know what it_   
_means -- we haven't caught one yet._

_Biasi has actually made himself useful. He's cobbled_   
_together a bunch of number-crunchers, and they're_   
_compiling lists of survivors. Well, coherent survivors._   
_It's going slowly, though, he only has about five_   
_thousand names, last I heard. Some of them aren't very_   
_interested in being organized, others are desperate for_   
_any sort of direction. When the additional_   
_Eleemosynaries get here, we'll get a proper refugee_   
_camp set up. The Eidolons are sending a mediator._   
_Hopefully they can keep the, er, peace-keeping force in_   
_line. Frell, that's awkward. Think we could get PK High_   
_Command to institute a name change? Oh, Doctor_   
_Entellias is passing by and suggests Warmongers._   
_Anyway, Uncle Rygel's troop has been a lot of help, more_   
_than you might expect -- a dam was destroyed nearby,_   
_and substantial parts of the city are chest-deep in murky_   
_water. They've brought in dozens of sane survivors, and_   
_haven't gotten into any fights (it helps that the Charrids_   
_were *not* invited to provide ground assistance), unlike_   
_*some* people. So far none of our intervening people_   
_have killed each other, so that's good. We focus on the_   
_positive stuff, and sort of try to ignore how the planet is in_   
_ruins._

_No Nebari we've met have admitted to being in the_   
_Resistance, though some of them almost have to be. I_   
_can't really blame them. Hardly anyone cares about_   
_opposing the Establishment at this point, but being_   
_connected with the group that sabotaged the_   
_Transmission and set off what is now being called the_   
_Collapse -- *that*, people care about._

_I have decided that Aunt Chi, having been unpleasantly_   
_surprised by her compatriots' disastrous Transmission_   
_stunt, sensibly lay low until it was safe to move around,_   
_then scavenged some resources and a ship and got the_   
_frell out before anyone could scapegoat her. She'd have_   
_to be crazy to surface now. She's probably living in_   
_disgusting luxury, someplace like LoMo, waiting for the_   
_commotion to die down. Then she'll turn up in twenty_   
_cycles, calling herself Princess Leia, just in time to get Ry_   
_into all sorts of trouble._

_I'll keep you posted. Love you Dad, love you Mom, love_   
_to Pilot and Moya, love to Dee and Pax and Ksenia and Ry._   
_Oh, and if you talk to Uncle Stark, tell him Tash is fine, she's_   
_just... really wrapped up in her work. Zhaan out._

_< Transmitted from the Eleemosynary Aid Camp on Nebari Prime to the Leviathan Moya>_

**Author's Note:**

> The whole premise of this series is kind of hilarious if you know that I hate, loathe, and despise zombie apocalypse stories.


End file.
